James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli has poured cold water on the idea that the enigmatic spy should be played by a woman. He may, however, be played by an actor who isn't white, she said, as speculation around who will next fill the shoes of Ian Fleming's charismatic spy continues to grow.

"No Time to Die," released in April, will be Daniel Craig's final 007 appearance. Producer Broccoli told Variety that changing the iconic character's gender would be doing women a disservice.

"He can be of any colour, but he is male," she said. "I believe we should be creating new characters for women – strong female characters."

While audiences may be calling for more diversity in movies, the filmmaker, who is the daughter of the original 007 producer Albert R. Broccoli, said she is not "particularly interested" in taking a male character and having a woman play it.

"I think women are far more interesting than that," she added.